Great Highway historic building could change from church to child care

A historic building on the Great Highway, originally built for a San Francisco fire chief who died in the 1906 earthquake, could become a child-care facility after years hosting a Korean-language church.

The building at 1984 Great Highway is home to the Good News Presbyterian Church, but on Thursday the San Francisco Planning Commission is scheduled to consider a request to turn it into Growing Tree Child Care.

The permit the commission will consider doesn’t request major physical changes to the building, but proposes to use the facility to care for up to 60 children from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Under normal City standards, two off-street parking spaces would be required for a child-care facility of the size proposed, but the application requests that the commission waive the requirement and allow the facility to operate without providing parking other than street parking.

According to a report prepared by the Planning Department staff for the commission, the department has received three objections to the proposal from nearby residents.

“While we don’t have an objection to 15 children, we certainly feel that 60 is too many. In addition to the noise level, we feel the additional traffic it will generate will affect the adjoining properties,” Jean McDonagh wrote in an email to the Planning Department that was included in the staff report.

“We do not object the concept of creating a child care facility there, but we do SERIOUSLY [sic] object to the obvious parking problems which will arise,” wrote Lisa Largent and Dean Abramson, who suggested that the proposed child-care facility should arrange for parking on Lower Great Highway.

That staff report recommends the Planning Commission approve the permit.

Watch the San Francisco Planning Commission on Comcast Cable Channel 78 starting at noon, or on the web.

Read more about the building at 1984 Great Highway and the use proposed for it: